New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots did not turn in their best outing on Sunday afternoon against the Atlanta Falcons, but they still did enough to pick up a 24-23 victory when all was said and done. Second-year quarterback Drake Maye led the way once again, and after this big win, he earned a shout-out from Pat McAfee.
Maye completed 19 of his 29 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 20 yards on eight carries. However, he lost a fumble at the end of the second quarter that led to a Falcons touchdown, and he threw an interception that turned into three more points for Atlanta.
It certainly wasn’t Maye’s cleanest outing, but he did what he had to do to get his team over the hump. Developing consistency has been one of the keys to New England’s ongoing win streak, and McAfee credited Maye for taking some big steps forward in that department.
“Very real team up there in New England,” McAfee said on “The Pat McAfee Show.” “Such a culture shift from last year to this year, and another stepping stone for Drake Maye is just being able to do it all the time, and he does.”
Even with his two turnovers, if throwing for 250 yards and two scores is considered a bad day for Maye, the Patriots would likely take that every day of the week. This was also only the 21st start of Maye’s career, so it’s clear that he still has tons of room to grow.
It will be important for Maye to turn the page quickly because he and the Pats have a big matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coming up in Week 10. Kickoff for this important game is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon.
